The Proper Care of Young Arm

If you’ve read my blog before, you’ve probably figured out by now that Lefty plays for a travel ball organization called MIT. What you might not know is that while MIT officially stands for Mentoring, Instruction and Training, my wife and some of the other MIT moms often joke that it should really stand for “Men in Training” (because of the important life lessons our kids are learning through baseball.) Looks like the MIT moms…

Having a sore arm is a part of baseball. Throwing a baseball is an inherently difficult and unnatural motion. And if you have a baseball player, there will most likely be a time when you hear, “My arm is sore.” We can spend hours (if not days or weeks) discussing important topics like prevention, training and overuse. As a parent of a youth baseball player, I know it’s my responsibility to be well-informed and his…

Researcher at the American Sports Medicine Institute believe there is a the link between overuse at a young age and future injuries. An ASMI study published in 2011 examined 481 pitchers ages 9-14, and then checked with them 10 years later. Those who threw more than 100 innings in a year were 3.5 times more likely to need elbow or shoulder surgery or were forced to stop playing baseball. ASMI Position Statement for Youth Baseball…

#4 Rice Bucket – Build Arm Strength This is one of my favorite exercises because it does not involve weights so players of all ages can do this drill. This drill will strengthen the wrists, forearms and shoulders. Give this exercise a try with your player, you will be amazed at the strength developed in your wrists and forearms. Rice bucket drills can be used as strength building exercises for ball players of all ages. The…

#3 in my journey…Icing Arms At some point in your young player’s development, you will ask yourself the same question I did about a year and a half ago. I wrote a post called Should Young Pitchers Ice Their Arms. I contacted Dr. Alexander Espinoza, Board Certified in Family Medicine and Sports Medicine, with Medicine-In-Motion and posed the question, should young pitchers ice their arms? Dr. Espinoza stated “Icing in a young thrower has not been shown to…

THE PROPER CARE OF LEFTY’S ARM I care for Lefty’s arm more than I ever cared for my own. I am consumed by idea that his arm health is my responsibility at this age. I am on a journey of discovery. I spend a lot of time scouring the internet and speaking with coaches, players, physicians for information on age appropriate arm strengthening drills and injury prevention for Lefty. How can I strengthen and prevent injury…